Equatorial Guinea

The Republic of Equatorial Guinea is a country in Central Africa. It is one of the smallest countries in continental Africa, and comprises two regions: a Continental Region (Ro Muni); and an Insular Region containing Annobn island, Bioko island (formerly Fernando Po) where the capital of Malabo is situated, and several offshore islands like Corisco.

Equatorial Guinea gained independence in 1968 after 190 years of Spanish rule. This tiny country, composed of a mainland portion plus five inhabited islands, is one of the smallest on the African continent. President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo has ruled the country since 1979 when he seized power in a coup. Although nominally a constitutional democracy since 1991, the 1996, 2002, and 2009 presidential elections - as well as the 1999, 2004, 2008, and 2013 legislative elections - were widely seen as flawed. The president exerts almost total control over the political system and has discouraged political opposition. Equatorial Guinea has experienced rapid economic growth due to the discovery of large offshore oil reserves, and in the last decade has become Sub-Saharan Africa's third largest oil exporter. Despite the country's economic windfall from oil production, resulting in a massive increase in government revenue in recent years, improvements in the population's living standards have been slow to develop.

Overview: The discovery and exploitation of large oil and gas reserves have
contributed to dramatic economic growth, but fluctuating oil prices
along with slowing or declining oil production have resulted in much
lower GDP growth in recent years. The economy is still dominated by
hydrocarbon production. The government has solicited foreign investment,
particularly from the United States, to diversify the economy and in
February 2014 the government hosted an economic diversification
symposium focused on attracting investment in five sectors: agriculture
and animal ranching, fishing, mining and petrochemicals, tourism, and
financial services. Undeveloped mineral resources include gold, zinc,
diamonds, columbite-tantalite, and other base metals. Forestry and
farming are also minor components of GDP. Subsistence farming is the
dominant form of livelihood. Although pre-independence Equatorial Guinea
counted on cocoa production for hard currency earnings, the neglect of
the rural economy under successive regimes has diminished potential for
agriculture-led growth. The government has stated its intention to
reinvest some oil revenue into agriculture. A number of aid programs
sponsored by the World Bank and the IMF have been cut off since 1993
because of corruption and mismanagement. The government has been widely
criticized for its lack of transparency and misuse of oil revenues and
has attempted to address this issue by working towards compliance with
the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative.

international disputes: in 2002, ICJ ruled on an equidistance settlement of Cameroon-Equatorial Guinea-Nigeria maritime boundary in the Gulf of Guinea, but a dispute between Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon over an island at the mouth of the Ntem River and imprecisely defined maritime coordinates in the ICJ decision delay final delimitation; UN urges Equatorial Guinea and Gabon to resolve the sovereignty dispute over Gabon-occupied Mbane and lesser islands and to create a maritime boundary in the hydrocarbon-rich Corisco Bay

human trafficking: Equatorial
Guinea is a source and destination country for women and children
subjected to forced labor and sexual exploitation; children have been
trafficked from nearby countries for work as domestic servants, market
laborers, ambulant vendors, and launderers; women may also be trafficked
to Equatorial Guinea from Cameroon, Benin, other neighboring countries,
and China for forced labor or prostitution; Equatorial Guinean girls
may be encouraged by their parents to engage in the sex trade in urban
centers to receive groceries, gifts, housing, and money